Read Online Brimstone and Lily (Legacy Stone Adventures) by Terry Kroenung - Free Book Online
Authors: Terry Kroenung
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figured that this thing had grown used to overcoming its prey with fear and not having to work hard. Maybe I could rattle its cage.
“Jasper,” I whispered, “what is that ugly thing?”
“Venoma,” he told me with disgust. “A dearth-demon from the other side. The Bullies use her for their dirty work, to soften up their enemies.”
“Soften up? How tough are their enemies if this is just their skirmish line? Who can stand up to this monster?”
“Don’t worry. She has a weakness. Everything that lives has one.”
“Yeah? Good. What’s hers?”
Jasper laughed in my head. Somehow that simple sound steadied my nerves. “Me.”
My shield melted down and stretched out until I held the gold-hilted sword again. It seemed to give off a slight glow. The same fiery letters that had covered the wall of the underground chamber now danced down the length of the blade. As soon as Venoma saw this she shrank back up the wall. That made me feel ten feet tall. I hoped that would be big enough, but I couldn’t be sure.
“You’ve seen this sword before,” I said to her. “And you’re afraid of it.”
Venoma’s voice rasped, hissed, croaked, all at the same time. It felt like hearing a dead thing while it rotted, complete with worms. Now it was my turn to shrink back. “Thou puny man-spawn, dost thou ken how to wield yon blade?”
Scared as I was, I burst out laughing. The Evil Ones talk like Shakespeare?This gets weirder and weirder . “It seems simple enough. I swing it as hard as I can and your head falls off.”
The oozing thing on the wall laughed right back. At least I thought so. It sounded more like a post-mortem knife cutting into a corpse. “Only one mortal canst claim the Morphageus. ‘Tis bitter death to all else.”
Morphageus? No wonder he wanted to be called Jasper. I pulled the Legacy Stone out of my shirt and held it up for her to see. White frost covered most of it, but the muted burgundy glow still shined through. “Then this mortal claims it, bitch.” Yeah, this girl’s feelin’ saucy!
Venoma cocked her head in silence, as if listening to something I couldn’t hear. It seemed I’d flummoxed her. This kid wasn’t what she’d been told to expect. Maybe the enemy, this Honourable Merchantry, didn’t have all of the answers, either. That made me feel a little better. Not getting eaten by this fiend in the next few moments would be good, too, because she bunched her ugly body up again and made ready to jump.
Sucking in a panicked breath, I raised the sword in front of my face with both hands. Braced for her attack, every muscle trembled. When the pounce came, I flinched. Great, Verity. Close your eyes and hope she lands on your sword point. Why not just go hide under your bed? I must’ve looked fearsome, because Venoma didn’t come at me but instead flew across the alley onto the roof of the next building.
“Another time, man-spawn,” she hissed. “Now my master shalt dole out thy pain.”
Just then the stage door opened and Eddie skipped out.
6/ Marshals of the Equity
“Who’s a pet? I’m a freedom fighter!”
I jerked my body to face the door. Eddie? Eddie’s one of ‘em, too? Things were spinning out of control. While deciding if I should I whack him and run for it, I felt something odd. The Stone, warm and dark. Every bit of the frost had melted away. Eddie’s okay! The breath I’d been holding forever leaked out of my nose. All my muscles sagged and I almost fell over.
“Hi, there,” Eddie said, shuffling toward me. “Where have you been? Rehearsal’s over. You missed a boatload of scenery shifts. Everyone’s---hey! Nice sword.”
Oops. I’d forgotten to hide it or have Jasper shift into a cup again. Before I could dream up a good explanation for why I stood in a dark alley with a flaming sword, Venoma settled the whole problem. Her claws ripped a chunk of tile out of the roof she crouched on. Hunks of clay clattered onto the ground next to Eddie. He
“Jasper,” I whispered, “what is that ugly thing?”
“Venoma,” he told me with disgust. “A dearth-demon from the other side. The Bullies use her for their dirty work, to soften up their enemies.”
“Soften up? How tough are their enemies if this is just their skirmish line? Who can stand up to this monster?”
“Don’t worry. She has a weakness. Everything that lives has one.”
“Yeah? Good. What’s hers?”
Jasper laughed in my head. Somehow that simple sound steadied my nerves. “Me.”
My shield melted down and stretched out until I held the gold-hilted sword again. It seemed to give off a slight glow. The same fiery letters that had covered the wall of the underground chamber now danced down the length of the blade. As soon as Venoma saw this she shrank back up the wall. That made me feel ten feet tall. I hoped that would be big enough, but I couldn’t be sure.
“You’ve seen this sword before,” I said to her. “And you’re afraid of it.”
Venoma’s voice rasped, hissed, croaked, all at the same time. It felt like hearing a dead thing while it rotted, complete with worms. Now it was my turn to shrink back. “Thou puny man-spawn, dost thou ken how to wield yon blade?”
Scared as I was, I burst out laughing. The Evil Ones talk like Shakespeare?This gets weirder and weirder . “It seems simple enough. I swing it as hard as I can and your head falls off.”
The oozing thing on the wall laughed right back. At least I thought so. It sounded more like a post-mortem knife cutting into a corpse. “Only one mortal canst claim the Morphageus. ‘Tis bitter death to all else.”
Morphageus? No wonder he wanted to be called Jasper. I pulled the Legacy Stone out of my shirt and held it up for her to see. White frost covered most of it, but the muted burgundy glow still shined through. “Then this mortal claims it, bitch.” Yeah, this girl’s feelin’ saucy!
Venoma cocked her head in silence, as if listening to something I couldn’t hear. It seemed I’d flummoxed her. This kid wasn’t what she’d been told to expect. Maybe the enemy, this Honourable Merchantry, didn’t have all of the answers, either. That made me feel a little better. Not getting eaten by this fiend in the next few moments would be good, too, because she bunched her ugly body up again and made ready to jump.
Sucking in a panicked breath, I raised the sword in front of my face with both hands. Braced for her attack, every muscle trembled. When the pounce came, I flinched. Great, Verity. Close your eyes and hope she lands on your sword point. Why not just go hide under your bed? I must’ve looked fearsome, because Venoma didn’t come at me but instead flew across the alley onto the roof of the next building.
“Another time, man-spawn,” she hissed. “Now my master shalt dole out thy pain.”
Just then the stage door opened and Eddie skipped out.
6/ Marshals of the Equity
“Who’s a pet? I’m a freedom fighter!”
I jerked my body to face the door. Eddie? Eddie’s one of ‘em, too? Things were spinning out of control. While deciding if I should I whack him and run for it, I felt something odd. The Stone, warm and dark. Every bit of the frost had melted away. Eddie’s okay! The breath I’d been holding forever leaked out of my nose. All my muscles sagged and I almost fell over.
“Hi, there,” Eddie said, shuffling toward me. “Where have you been? Rehearsal’s over. You missed a boatload of scenery shifts. Everyone’s---hey! Nice sword.”
Oops. I’d forgotten to hide it or have Jasper shift into a cup again. Before I could dream up a good explanation for why I stood in a dark alley with a flaming sword, Venoma settled the whole problem. Her claws ripped a chunk of tile out of the roof she crouched on. Hunks of clay clattered onto the ground next to Eddie. He
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